Percussion refers to musical instruments that you play by striking, shaking, or scraping them. When you hit a drum with your hands or sticks, bang cymbals together, shake a maraca, or strike a xylophone with mallets, you're playing percussion instruments.

Percussion instruments are among the oldest in human history. Ancient people made drums from animal skins stretched over hollow logs, and archaeologists have found rattles and drums dating back thousands of years. Today's orchestras include a whole percussion section with instruments like timpani (large kettle drums), snare drums, bass drums, triangles, tambourines, and gongs.

Percussion instruments create rhythm and add excitement to music. Think about how a drumbeat makes you want to tap your foot or how a cymbal crash adds drama to an intense moment in a movie. Some percussion instruments, like xylophones and marimbas, play specific musical notes. Others, like most drums, create rhythmic sounds without clear pitch.

The word can also describe a medical technique of tapping on someone's body to check what's inside. When a doctor practices percussion on a patient's chest or back, different sounds can reveal whether organs are healthy or if fluid has built up where it shouldn't be.